It matters that he stole away Maruki's most important person. It matters that Akechi is going to die for him.
It matters that-
"If they want you, they'll have you."
-Akira is here, even if he'll always be the wrong one.]
...Then I'll be here, if and until that isn't what they need from me.
[Akira tilts his head back to look up at him, trying to assess what he'll do. There's a tension in his hands that he doesn't know how to read. Maybe Eren is holding himself back from something.
Maybe Akira wishes he wouldn't hold back at all.
Akira doesn't know how to give them what they need when he isn't even the person they need. But he has to try. There's no other choice but to try. He doesn't know what to do, so he'll have to figure it out.
Maruki wanted him here. It hurts, but it has to mean something.]
lmao oh these two are gonna be a mess WOOF THOSE BRACKETS AKIRA don't let eren know ur similar <3
[He tilts his head to the side. It seems like... an odd suggestion for someone that seems pretty displeased with him.
Maybe it's just to keep an eye on him? Akira thinks that makes sense, so he should go along with it. That would be the best outcome for all of them; Eren can feel better about him being around if he's keeping an eye on him, and Akira can keep his head down so he doesn't make things any worse.]
It won't. But if you want to... I'd like that. You care about them a lot.
[It will never be enough. It will never make up for it.
Akira understands he can't fix what's lost. But he can at least do one thing right by them, and that's to try and understand the people that love them.
The mask he has to figure out now is "Kurusu Akira", and maybe that's the most difficult one of all.
Glancing around though... He really has to hurry now. How long has it been... Maruki could be up at any minute, and he has to restart the batch. Most of the ingredients are still laid out. He'll need to repay Maruki for what he lost as well...]
Are you hungry?
akira like "yes mommy whatever u say mommy yes mommy"
Maruki's eyes still feel swollen and bruised from the day before, even after knocking out for twelve hours minimum. He hears the hum of voices downstairs – something strange he'll have to get used to now, and so there's no thought in his head that it might be anyone other than Akira and Akechi, but– ]
Eren?
[ Asked through the end of his yawn as he finishes rubbing sleep from his eyes and knocks his glasses back down onto his face, blinking rapidly as groggy consciousness catches up to him.
A beat, and then he smiles at both of them, sleepy and subdued but genuine. ]
This is– oh, I'm so glad you two got to meet! I was hoping to make the introduction myself, but... [ That smile only grows wider, warmer, and then he spies all the food laid out. ] Kurusu-kun, is Eren helping you make breakfast?
[ As ever, the reality that exists only in Maruki Takuto's head is so much kinder than the truth. ]
[Rapidly, a couple of calculations occur in Akira's mind.
Eren also heard the creak like Akira did, Maruki is pleased but not exactly surprised - Akira never doubted him, but he can infer that Eren probably does spend a good portion of his time here. Maruki doen't use an honorific with him, so he's as close in Maruki's eyes as he is in Eren's. And lastly... Maruki has absolutely no clue about what's gone on in this kitchen.
It's better that the latter stays that way.]
Yes. [He nods, setting things out on the table. His voice is demure; it's the way he kept it around Sojiro when they first met, when he didn't know if he'd ever see the kindness underneath that gruff exterior, even directed at someone that wasn't Akira himself. The situation is different now, but it's still useful.] I'm still getting used to this place and made a few mistakes, so Eren-san helped correct me.
[It's a gamble. Akira never makes mistakes in the kitchen, not anymore. But he's still gambling on that "other reality's Akira" never cooking for Maruki, or at least not letting that particular fact slip.]
[Not a lie, really. Eren wonders if Kurusu's wording thereof was intentional.]
You know I'm not much of a cook. [He looks toward Maruki.] I wanted to meet Kurusu on my own the first time. I knew you wouldn't allow that, so long as you were awake. That's all.
[ Eren is right, of course. Maruki would have moved heaven and earth to be there when they met if he was conscious. Alas, the spirit and flesh were both weak.
He hesitates for a moment at the edge of the kitchen, then laughs at himself as he swings around to sit at the bar instead. ]
This is the first time I haven't had to cook breakfast myself in half a year. It's surreal being on the other side of things.
[ An elbow propped up on the bar counter, he rests his chin on his palm and watches the two of them fondly.
It's almost like Leblanc. Discussing the collective unconscious over coffee. That only adds to the dreamlike quality, really... ]
To catch you up to speed, Eren was one of the first people I met here. He actually let me stay with him while I was still brand new, before Akechi-kun and I moved in together. We've been friends ever since.
[ Not strictly true, as it leaves out the whole part where Eren was very much his patient, but there's no need to get into that. ]
He has a farm not far from here, I'll take you over sometime. They have so many cats...
[ He thinks to ask if the little black and white one stayed with the Sakuras when he left Tokyo, but drops the thought as soon as it comes to him. He knows he can and will chatter on to fill the silence, and that even if Akira doesn't recognize it as a nervous habit, Eren will. ]
[Akira freezes with his hands setting the plates down, the offer to cook for Maruki whenever he wants momentarily forgotten, swept straight out of his mind. But this time, maybe he's freezing in not such a bad way.]
...There's cats there? [His head darts up, a hopeful sparkle in his eye before he remembers himself and smothers it down. He can't just ask for that. But if Maruki wants to go, then maybe-] If Eren-san is alright with it, that sounds really nice.
[There's a sort of peace about cats, about really any sort of animal. Akira's always loved them, but he also doesn't always have to be "on" with them. Right now, it sounds like a balm.]
You've known each other for a long time.
[He directs the attention away from himself, what could be an implication of what he likes. He hasn't been this careless in a while, but a lot has thrown him off recently.]
[Eren had done well enough to prepare himself to have a one on one conversation with Kurusu, but he hadn't, apparently, thought too much about how it would feel to actually try and play nice. Naturally, Maruki would offer up the farm, and he has every right to; still, Eren doesn't particularly want to sit around talking about how much Kurusu just loves kitties.]
Maruki stays at the farm. He's welcome to bring anyone he wants.
[...]
The barn is full of cats. [LOOK! He's trying.
[Who does a guy have to fuck to get some tea around here? He simply moves through the kitchen to start preparing it himself.]
[ Maruki may not have any idea what just transpired in this kitchen, but he knows Eren Jaeger like he knows his own soul. He isn't exactly warm towards people who hadn't already earned it before his brief time away from Somnius, to say nothing of how kindly he probably looks upon someone who he thinks hurt Maruki. None of it is Akira's fault, and he even told Eren that, but...
Well. He knows his best friend, that's all. So it's clear that he is trying, and Maruki beams with sleepy pride. ]
Akechi-kun might lose his mind if we get another cat... which means we should, of course.
[ He's about to ask Eren to start coffee for him too, then about to ask Akira if he still makes coffee even though he's no longer living in the café, and then both get swept from his mind as something far stronger than caffeine jolts into his system. ]
I should tell you now– [ Akechi could be anywhere. He beckons Akira closer and lowers his voice. ] I've made him believe there's a second cat here that he's just never seen. It's kind of a long story, but if you could help keep that ruse going... Eren's in on it too!
[ And then, back to his normal volume. ]
She's black and white, and I named her Neko-chan. I'm not very good at naming animals...
Edited (holy fuck good night) 2024-11-15 12:38 (UTC)
[Akira's just going to take that as signal to only come over when Maruki wants to go with him. Maybe... he'll even say that they can go soon...
It's hard to truly want anything for himself right now. Generally, he avoids it anyway, but right now it feels... wrong. To want, or to feel happy.
However.
Leaning in to listen to what Maruki says, it's not what he's expecting. How Maruki acts about Akechi isn't what he's expecting at all, in fact, but there's at least one thing that remains true.
He leans back, lenses obscuring his eyes momentarily. The glasses positively gleam.]
It's a cute name, Maruki-san. I'm really looking forward to meeting her.
[It doesn't matter what else is going on, what else he's feeling, or who else may be involved. Akira is always down for gaslighting Akechi Goro.]
Unfortunately, it's true. She's so skittish. I've really been trying, but...
[ Ah, this Akira doesn't already know how bad he is with animals, how he'd try to rescue cats from trees and show up late to school with bandaged claw marks on his hands. Well, he'll learn in time.
And then, the affectation dropped in favor of hopeful sincerity again: ]
Our coffee setup is nowhere near as sophisticated as what you're probably used to, but you're free to use it whenever you'd like.
[ He almost tells Eren, when I met him, he lived at a café that made the best coffee I'd ever tasted, but he bites it back. Akira can tell his own story, in his own time. It isn't his place. ]
Please consider everything here yours as well, Kurusu-kun. I know that's difficult to do, I had a hard time when I first moved into the castle as well, but... it's your home too.
He wishes Maruki hadn't said that. Not now, maybe not for quite a while, but certainly not in front of Eren. He has to hold it together.
He can't cry, because he can't stand doing it in front of people. He cannot cry, because he has not earned it. He cannot cry, because just like the rest of the Phantom Thieves, Maruki's pain is greater than Akira's could ever be.
These are things Akira already knew. But it's good that Eren was able to confirm the things that still might've been in question.
He bows his head. Akira already knows his voice will come out unsteady, but if he doesn't look - it should be easier to control the rest of himself.]
...Thank you. I- [I shouldn't be taking this, but he can feel Eren's presence, maybe even his gaze, like a phantom limb. He must. He owes him this.] I'm grateful. If there's anything I can do to make it up to you...
[It would be difficult for him to not pay back a debt regardless of who it was. Like this, it's crushing. Something like this, on the level of what Sojiro did for him after so long under his roof...
Does Maruki even know, what effect the things he's saying have?]
If you'd like- if either of you would like, I can make some coffee. [He stands quickly, tries to move on from that moment.] I've worked with enough different equipment by now that I can figure it out.
[It'll give his hands something to do right now, too, which is something he sorely needs. Even if it's only for himself, he's probably making a cup.]
[Eren does watch Akira - closely. Maruki uses the word "home" much more freely than Eren does - they must define it in different ways. To offer one's home to someone else, though, is a grand gesture, in Eren's mind. Akira's right not to reject that kindness. To some extent, his amiability grates. Eren isn't sure if he finds it to be disingenuous or annoying; from what Maruki's told him, it must be the second one.
[Odd how Eren always condemns Akechi as a liar, but feels he prefers that deception over this authenticity, now that it's been placed in front of him. He still feels he understands his friend much better...
[Aside from that, Eren's already just made tea, so the coffee won't be necessary. Maruki can accept it if he'd like. Eren finishes his own task without offering.]
[ Maruki has spent half a year in Somnius. Before that, he spent half a year watching Kurusu Akira's every move. On paper, it's not a lot of time – but in practice, so much can happen in just six months.
He may not know this Akira, but he knows Akira. He knows the practiced, calm confidence that he exudes. The way he holds himself together, even while discussing difficult topics. The conviction that runs through him, keeps him upright against all the injustices thrown at him.
So the waver in his voice could be slight. It could be subtle. It could be next to nothing. Maruki would still hear it.
He gestures for Eren to come back around and sit next to him at the bar, chooses his words carefully, even as they come out casual as anything else. ]
Coffee would be great, thank you. And don't worry about making anything up to me. [ He waves a vague hand around as if to encompass the whole of the machiya as he speaks. ] I have more of what this place considers money and more space than I know what to do with... which, well– you can imagine how different that is from a counselor's life in Tokyo. Being able to freely share what I have is an opportunity I don't take lightly.
It's kind of you. [His voice is already evening out as he carefully checks the equipment. This is the same. Whenever he got stressed in Tokyo... When he had to go back home... Making coffee and Morgana's voice were always the things that soothed him, settling the disturbed waves underneath a frozen lake. Already his heart is a little less clouded. You must've had to go through a lot here for all of this.
[Stories that maybe he'll hear, and maybe that he won't. Akira wonders how many of them Akechi and Eren have been a part of.
The former isn't here right now, obviously. The latter is still making tea, so... His eyes dart between him and Maruki.]
What kind of work have you two been doing here? Would it be farming for Eren-san, and counseling for Maruki-san, or...?
[It seems like both of them are well-off in Akira's view, but he doesn't have anything else to truly compare it to. He hasn't seen the barn yet, but he'd imagine that takes a reasonable amount of money to maintain, too.]
[Maruki calls "heel," and Eren appears at his side, ever the loyal dog. His eyes haven't left Akira, although he "tries" not to stare. The tea can wait, apparently. He takes that gesture as a sign that Maruki needs him near.]
Not farming. [Not really. Other people grow things in the garden, and he helps out with the animals. That's about it.]
At one point, I ran a food business. [He's supposed to at least answer, right? He doesn't really feel like getting into the details; never a fan of small talk, Eren.]
[ Honestly, he just wants Eren to stop hovering in the kitchen and chill. When the kettle's done, he can pop in and grab the tea for him. ]
And now I cook for said food business... unofficially, and only sometimes. It's more of a useful pastime than a job.
[ He props his chin up on a palm, drums his fingers against his cheek as he watches Akira move about the kitchen. ]
But up until fairly recently, I was the counselor here, yes. Unfortunately, that's on indefinite pause. [ And why isn't important, because Eren doesn't need to get more pissed off than he probably is! ] Why, are you thinking of looking for a part-time job, Kurusu-kun?
[The question pulls him up short. Akira rolls the thought around in his head like a worrystone, lets it jog and soothe his brain in equal measure. Does he want a part-time job? Is that something he should tell them, even if he does?
There's an itch there, an urge to keep it quiet until he decides and inevitably chooses to seek something out. Private. But Maruki is the one Akira has chosen to share a roof with during his stay here, and he deserves to know that much. Even Sojiro was aware of his comings and goings, even if he didn't always know the "where".]
...I might be. I'm so used to working, it feels almost strange not to.
[He needs to keep his hands busy, needs to do something useful, but neither of those are things he can or should say.]
If either of you have recommendations, I'm happy to hear them.
[ The kettle clicks off, water percolating steadily inside. Maruki slides off the stool to come around to the other side of the bar, pours Eren's tea as he speaks. ]
You could certainly do deliveries for Thermo– or even help Jean and I with the cooking, honestly! There are other options, though, if you didn't want to work with me, hah...
[ Tea set in front of Eren, Maruki leans a hip against the counter and ticks the options off on his fingers. ]
A good friend of mine, Dolph Laserhawk, runs a club that can always use bartenders and servers. [ Crossroads. ] There aren't many restaurants here, not like what we're used to in Tokyo, but I bet you could get a job working at one that the native inhabitants run. [ Ore no Beko. ] Other people I know have their own shops too– Iris-san has something like a drugstore, and Basil-kun runs a flower shop... [ Triple Seven, Rafflesia.
Maruki pauses, then smiles brightly at Akira as he heads back to his seat. ]
Working during my first few months here helped me to settle in better. Like you said, it feels strange not to. I'll put in a good recommendation for you wherever you go.
[Just for a moment, Akira pauses; with his back turned to both of them, the scent of coffee blooming beneath his nose, he allows a furrow to spread between his brows.
Because isn't that just a little too familiar?
Don't those hit just a little too close to home? It's not like those aren't common jobs, but can there really be that many coincidences?
Akira lets it settle, sit, relax somewhere in his sternum. It could be a coincidence; Maruki could just be rattling off businesses he happened to pass on his commutes through Tokyo. Maybe, against all odds, Akira himself told Maruki about his part-time jobs. He can't see why he would continue being so vulnerable, but it seems there are many things he's told him that he never would to anyone else.
He gets out two mugs for coffee. His instincts prickle at the back of his neck, but he soothes them as best he can. Trust. He needs to have it, or at least take a step towards it.]
I appreciate it.
[He does. Even past his own strange feelings, he can still be grateful for it. That Maruki is working so hard to help him, even when Akira doesn't know him. That Eren would help him at all, when he has no reason to.]
These are the places I'll start, then. [His hands are steady as he pours. If there's something like a coffee shop, maybe even a teahouse- but on the other hand. It would be nice to keep that to Maruki's house for a little longer.] Even if they're not the same, they sound similar to a lot of the jobs I held back in Tokyo. And the things I don't know will be nice to learn.
[And it will. That, out of everything, will maybe be the most calming of all... To learn something new. To adapt.
The smell of coffee spreads to the rest of the room as Akira pours a cup for himself and Maruki, bringing it to the table.]
Akira wasn't there. Part of him still doesn't know why he went. A much worse part of him, buried deep in the distorted rot of his own heart, knows all too well. Past the end of summer, not quite yet the beginning of autumn. That no-man's land of time in September when the back of his teeth itched every day with the desire to see Akira again, to tell him about all the work he'd done on his paper over their break, all the work Maruki never would have been able to dream of doing without his influence. The warmth of Leblanc on a cool evening, the best coffee he'd ever tasted, the book he laid out on the counter as if a greater force was guiding his hand.
There is a memory–
Akira was there. The best coffee he'd ever tasted, handed to him right alongside the keys to the collective unconscious. That greater force right before him, bright and honest.
Maruki takes the cup. It isn't the same. Akira isn't the same. He isn't the same.
Maybe it's better that way.
He holds it in both hands, props his elbows up on the table to hold it just beneath his chin, steam curling up around his glasses as he smiles at this new Akira and tries his level best to mend his own heart. Beneath the table, he knocks his knee sideways against Eren's and rests it there. ]
You'll learn a lot here. We all have. I'm looking forward to it, Kurusu-kun.
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no subject
It doesn't matter? Of course it matters.
It matters that he stole away Maruki's most important person. It matters that Akechi is going to die for him.
It matters that-
...Then I'll be here, if and until that isn't what they need from me.
[Akira tilts his head back to look up at him, trying to assess what he'll do. There's a tension in his hands that he doesn't know how to read. Maybe Eren is holding himself back from something.
Maybe Akira wishes he wouldn't hold back at all.
Akira doesn't know how to give them what they need when he isn't even the person they need. But he has to try. There's no other choice but to try. He doesn't know what to do, so he'll have to figure it out.
Maruki wanted him here. It hurts, but it has to mean something.]
lmao oh these two are gonna be a mess WOOF THOSE BRACKETS AKIRA don't let eren know ur similar <3
["If" and "until" - no, no.]
You know your role, then.
We'll be seeing each other often. Suppose we ought to be friends. [He could not sound more disingenuous if he tried.]
FDHJKSDFJKSDFJKSDJK me waiting in the wings with the steel chair. i already love this so deeply.
Maybe it's just to keep an eye on him? Akira thinks that makes sense, so he should go along with it. That would be the best outcome for all of them; Eren can feel better about him being around if he's keeping an eye on him, and Akira can keep his head down so he doesn't make things any worse.]
It won't. But if you want to... I'd like that. You care about them a lot.
[It will never be enough. It will never make up for it.
Akira understands he can't fix what's lost. But he can at least do one thing right by them, and that's to try and understand the people that love them.
The mask he has to figure out now is "Kurusu Akira", and maybe that's the most difficult one of all.
Glancing around though... He really has to hurry now. How long has it been... Maruki could be up at any minute, and he has to restart the batch. Most of the ingredients are still laid out. He'll need to repay Maruki for what he lost as well...]
Are you hungry?
akira like "yes mommy whatever u say mommy yes mommy"
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Maruki's eyes still feel swollen and bruised from the day before, even after knocking out for twelve hours minimum. He hears the hum of voices downstairs – something strange he'll have to get used to now, and so there's no thought in his head that it might be anyone other than Akira and Akechi, but– ]
Eren?
[ Asked through the end of his yawn as he finishes rubbing sleep from his eyes and knocks his glasses back down onto his face, blinking rapidly as groggy consciousness catches up to him.
A beat, and then he smiles at both of them, sleepy and subdued but genuine. ]
This is– oh, I'm so glad you two got to meet! I was hoping to make the introduction myself, but... [ That smile only grows wider, warmer, and then he spies all the food laid out. ] Kurusu-kun, is Eren helping you make breakfast?
[ As ever, the reality that exists only in Maruki Takuto's head is so much kinder than the truth. ]
here comes yes mommy #2
Eren also heard the creak like Akira did, Maruki is pleased but not exactly surprised - Akira never doubted him, but he can infer that Eren probably does spend a good portion of his time here. Maruki doen't use an honorific with him, so he's as close in Maruki's eyes as he is in Eren's. And lastly... Maruki has absolutely no clue about what's gone on in this kitchen.
It's better that the latter stays that way.]
Yes. [He nods, setting things out on the table. His voice is demure; it's the way he kept it around Sojiro when they first met, when he didn't know if he'd ever see the kindness underneath that gruff exterior, even directed at someone that wasn't Akira himself. The situation is different now, but it's still useful.] I'm still getting used to this place and made a few mistakes, so Eren-san helped correct me.
[It's a gamble. Akira never makes mistakes in the kitchen, not anymore. But he's still gambling on that "other reality's Akira" never cooking for Maruki, or at least not letting that particular fact slip.]
no subject
You know I'm not much of a cook. [He looks toward Maruki.] I wanted to meet Kurusu on my own the first time. I knew you wouldn't allow that, so long as you were awake. That's all.
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He hesitates for a moment at the edge of the kitchen, then laughs at himself as he swings around to sit at the bar instead. ]
This is the first time I haven't had to cook breakfast myself in half a year. It's surreal being on the other side of things.
[ An elbow propped up on the bar counter, he rests his chin on his palm and watches the two of them fondly.
It's almost like Leblanc. Discussing the collective unconscious over coffee. That only adds to the dreamlike quality, really... ]
To catch you up to speed, Eren was one of the first people I met here. He actually let me stay with him while I was still brand new, before Akechi-kun and I moved in together. We've been friends ever since.
[ Not strictly true, as it leaves out the whole part where Eren was very much his patient, but there's no need to get into that. ]
He has a farm not far from here, I'll take you over sometime. They have so many cats...
[ He thinks to ask if the little black and white one stayed with the Sakuras when he left Tokyo, but drops the thought as soon as it comes to him. He knows he can and will chatter on to fill the silence, and that even if Akira doesn't recognize it as a nervous habit, Eren will. ]
no subject
...There's cats there? [His head darts up, a hopeful sparkle in his eye before he remembers himself and smothers it down. He can't just ask for that. But if Maruki wants to go, then maybe-] If Eren-san is alright with it, that sounds really nice.
[There's a sort of peace about cats, about really any sort of animal. Akira's always loved them, but he also doesn't always have to be "on" with them. Right now, it sounds like a balm.]
You've known each other for a long time.
[He directs the attention away from himself, what could be an implication of what he likes. He hasn't been this careless in a while, but a lot has thrown him off recently.]
no subject
Maruki stays at the farm. He's welcome to bring anyone he wants.
[...]
The barn is full of cats. [LOOK! He's trying.
[Who does a guy have to fuck to get some tea around here? He simply moves through the kitchen to start preparing it himself.]
Take one if you want.
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Well. He knows his best friend, that's all. So it's clear that he is trying, and Maruki beams with sleepy pride. ]
Akechi-kun might lose his mind if we get another cat... which means we should, of course.
[ He's about to ask Eren to start coffee for him too, then about to ask Akira if he still makes coffee even though he's no longer living in the café, and then both get swept from his mind as something far stronger than caffeine jolts into his system. ]
I should tell you now– [ Akechi could be anywhere. He beckons Akira closer and lowers his voice. ] I've made him believe there's a second cat here that he's just never seen. It's kind of a long story, but if you could help keep that ruse going... Eren's in on it too!
[ And then, back to his normal volume. ]
She's black and white, and I named her Neko-chan. I'm not very good at naming animals...
no subject
It's hard to truly want anything for himself right now. Generally, he avoids it anyway, but right now it feels... wrong. To want, or to feel happy.
However.
Leaning in to listen to what Maruki says, it's not what he's expecting. How Maruki acts about Akechi isn't what he's expecting at all, in fact, but there's at least one thing that remains true.
He leans back, lenses obscuring his eyes momentarily. The glasses positively gleam.]
It's a cute name, Maruki-san. I'm really looking forward to meeting her.
[It doesn't matter what else is going on, what else he's feeling, or who else may be involved. Akira is always down for gaslighting Akechi Goro.]
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[Eren speaks from where he's putting the tea kettle on.]
She's not very friendly.
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Unfortunately, it's true. She's so skittish. I've really been trying, but...
[ Ah, this Akira doesn't already know how bad he is with animals, how he'd try to rescue cats from trees and show up late to school with bandaged claw marks on his hands. Well, he'll learn in time.
And then, the affectation dropped in favor of hopeful sincerity again: ]
Our coffee setup is nowhere near as sophisticated as what you're probably used to, but you're free to use it whenever you'd like.
[ He almost tells Eren, when I met him, he lived at a café that made the best coffee I'd ever tasted, but he bites it back. Akira can tell his own story, in his own time. It isn't his place. ]
Please consider everything here yours as well, Kurusu-kun. I know that's difficult to do, I had a hard time when I first moved into the castle as well, but... it's your home too.
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He wishes Maruki hadn't said that. Not now, maybe not for quite a while, but certainly not in front of Eren. He has to hold it together.
He can't cry, because he can't stand doing it in front of people. He cannot cry, because he has not earned it. He cannot cry, because just like the rest of the Phantom Thieves, Maruki's pain is greater than Akira's could ever be.
These are things Akira already knew. But it's good that Eren was able to confirm the things that still might've been in question.
He bows his head. Akira already knows his voice will come out unsteady, but if he doesn't look - it should be easier to control the rest of himself.]
...Thank you. I- [I shouldn't be taking this, but he can feel Eren's presence, maybe even his gaze, like a phantom limb. He must. He owes him this.] I'm grateful. If there's anything I can do to make it up to you...
[It would be difficult for him to not pay back a debt regardless of who it was. Like this, it's crushing. Something like this, on the level of what Sojiro did for him after so long under his roof...
Does Maruki even know, what effect the things he's saying have?]
If you'd like- if either of you would like, I can make some coffee. [He stands quickly, tries to move on from that moment.] I've worked with enough different equipment by now that I can figure it out.
[It'll give his hands something to do right now, too, which is something he sorely needs. Even if it's only for himself, he's probably making a cup.]
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[Odd how Eren always condemns Akechi as a liar, but feels he prefers that deception over this authenticity, now that it's been placed in front of him. He still feels he understands his friend much better...
[Aside from that, Eren's already just made tea, so the coffee won't be necessary. Maruki can accept it if he'd like. Eren finishes his own task without offering.]
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He may not know this Akira, but he knows Akira. He knows the practiced, calm confidence that he exudes. The way he holds himself together, even while discussing difficult topics. The conviction that runs through him, keeps him upright against all the injustices thrown at him.
So the waver in his voice could be slight. It could be subtle. It could be next to nothing. Maruki would still hear it.
He gestures for Eren to come back around and sit next to him at the bar, chooses his words carefully, even as they come out casual as anything else. ]
Coffee would be great, thank you. And don't worry about making anything up to me. [ He waves a vague hand around as if to encompass the whole of the machiya as he speaks. ] I have more of what this place considers money and more space than I know what to do with... which, well– you can imagine how different that is from a counselor's life in Tokyo. Being able to freely share what I have is an opportunity I don't take lightly.
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[Stories that maybe he'll hear, and maybe that he won't. Akira wonders how many of them Akechi and Eren have been a part of.
The former isn't here right now, obviously. The latter is still making tea, so... His eyes dart between him and Maruki.]
What kind of work have you two been doing here? Would it be farming for Eren-san, and counseling for Maruki-san, or...?
[It seems like both of them are well-off in Akira's view, but he doesn't have anything else to truly compare it to. He hasn't seen the barn yet, but he'd imagine that takes a reasonable amount of money to maintain, too.]
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Not farming. [Not really. Other people grow things in the garden, and he helps out with the animals. That's about it.]
At one point, I ran a food business. [He's supposed to at least answer, right? He doesn't really feel like getting into the details; never a fan of small talk, Eren.]
I don't do that anymore.
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And now I cook for said food business... unofficially, and only sometimes. It's more of a useful pastime than a job.
[ He props his chin up on a palm, drums his fingers against his cheek as he watches Akira move about the kitchen. ]
But up until fairly recently, I was the counselor here, yes. Unfortunately, that's on indefinite pause. [ And why isn't important, because Eren doesn't need to get more pissed off than he probably is! ] Why, are you thinking of looking for a part-time job, Kurusu-kun?
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There's an itch there, an urge to keep it quiet until he decides and inevitably chooses to seek something out. Private. But Maruki is the one Akira has chosen to share a roof with during his stay here, and he deserves to know that much. Even Sojiro was aware of his comings and goings, even if he didn't always know the "where".]
...I might be. I'm so used to working, it feels almost strange not to.
[He needs to keep his hands busy, needs to do something useful, but neither of those are things he can or should say.]
If either of you have recommendations, I'm happy to hear them.
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You won't get bored here either way.
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You could certainly do deliveries for Thermo– or even help Jean and I with the cooking, honestly! There are other options, though, if you didn't want to work with me, hah...
[ Tea set in front of Eren, Maruki leans a hip against the counter and ticks the options off on his fingers. ]
A good friend of mine, Dolph Laserhawk, runs a club that can always use bartenders and servers. [ Crossroads. ] There aren't many restaurants here, not like what we're used to in Tokyo, but I bet you could get a job working at one that the native inhabitants run. [ Ore no Beko. ] Other people I know have their own shops too– Iris-san has something like a drugstore, and Basil-kun runs a flower shop... [ Triple Seven, Rafflesia.
Maruki pauses, then smiles brightly at Akira as he heads back to his seat. ]
Working during my first few months here helped me to settle in better. Like you said, it feels strange not to. I'll put in a good recommendation for you wherever you go.
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Because isn't that just a little too familiar?
Don't those hit just a little too close to home? It's not like those aren't common jobs, but can there really be that many coincidences?
Akira lets it settle, sit, relax somewhere in his sternum. It could be a coincidence; Maruki could just be rattling off businesses he happened to pass on his commutes through Tokyo. Maybe, against all odds, Akira himself told Maruki about his part-time jobs. He can't see why he would continue being so vulnerable, but it seems there are many things he's told him that he never would to anyone else.
He gets out two mugs for coffee. His instincts prickle at the back of his neck, but he soothes them as best he can. Trust. He needs to have it, or at least take a step towards it.]
I appreciate it.
[He does. Even past his own strange feelings, he can still be grateful for it. That Maruki is working so hard to help him, even when Akira doesn't know him. That Eren would help him at all, when he has no reason to.]
These are the places I'll start, then. [His hands are steady as he pours. If there's something like a coffee shop, maybe even a teahouse- but on the other hand. It would be nice to keep that to Maruki's house for a little longer.] Even if they're not the same, they sound similar to a lot of the jobs I held back in Tokyo. And the things I don't know will be nice to learn.
[And it will. That, out of everything, will maybe be the most calming of all... To learn something new. To adapt.
The smell of coffee spreads to the rest of the room as Akira pours a cup for himself and Maruki, bringing it to the table.]
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Akira wasn't there. Part of him still doesn't know why he went. A much worse part of him, buried deep in the distorted rot of his own heart, knows all too well. Past the end of summer, not quite yet the beginning of autumn. That no-man's land of time in September when the back of his teeth itched every day with the desire to see Akira again, to tell him about all the work he'd done on his paper over their break, all the work Maruki never would have been able to dream of doing without his influence. The warmth of Leblanc on a cool evening, the best coffee he'd ever tasted, the book he laid out on the counter as if a greater force was guiding his hand.
There is a memory–
Akira was there. The best coffee he'd ever tasted, handed to him right alongside the keys to the collective unconscious. That greater force right before him, bright and honest.
Maruki takes the cup. It isn't the same. Akira isn't the same. He isn't the same.
Maybe it's better that way.
He holds it in both hands, props his elbows up on the table to hold it just beneath his chin, steam curling up around his glasses as he smiles at this new Akira and tries his level best to mend his own heart. Beneath the table, he knocks his knee sideways against Eren's and rests it there. ]
You'll learn a lot here. We all have. I'm looking forward to it, Kurusu-kun.